History of Easter:

• What exactly happened on the first Easter?  Very simply put, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion by the Romans.
• When did this happen?  This has been a topic of great debate.  It's traditionally held that Jesus was 33-years-old when he died, and that the year was 33 A.D.  However, various theories have been laid down anywhere from 26 A.D. to 36 A.D.
• You don't hear much about Maundy Thursday, but this is the day that celebrates the Last Supper of Jesus (it was on a Thursday).
• The next day, now known as Good Friday, is when Jesus was crucified.
• We're told what happened to Jesus on that fateful Thursday, Friday, and Sunday.  I'd like to know if anything significant happened on Saturday.  If anyone can help, please CONTACT ME.
  
• What happened to Jesus after his resurrection?  I have been curious about this point, myself.  You never hear much about it.  Allegedly, 40 days after the resurrection of Christ, he ascended to Heaven to take his place beside God.  Jesus told his disciples that when he comes back to Earth (i.e. the second coming) it will take place much in the same manner as his ascension.
• For the 40-day period from Jesus' resurrection to his ascension, he made a series of appearances to his disciples.  This period is a bit more vague to us than any other.
  
• Easter and its related holidays are labeled "moveable feasts".  This means that the date of Easter is not set by any civil calendar.  Rather, it is determined by a lunisolar calendar (similar to the Hebrew calendar).
• The First Council of Nicaea, in 325 A.D., established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon (Paschal Full Moon) following the Northern Hemisphere's vernal equinox.  Sound tricky?  It is.  All one really needs to know is that by this logic, Easter will always fall on a day somewhere from March 22 to April 25.
• Like everything with religion, the precise date for Easter has been a matter of contention among authorities in Christianity.
  
• The Easter Bunny was not originally a symbol of Easter.  It was brought to America from Germany in the 1700s and soon became a fixture of Easter that has taken hold of the entire Christian world.  See The Easter Bunny.